Europe's biggest clubs are planning to flex their muscles in the January transfer window after a thrilling World Cup put some new names in the shop window.
Transfer fees continue to defy economic sense, but which player is actually worth the most?
The CIES Football Observatory, based in Switzerland, has worked it out, and has released their bi-annual list of the top 100 most valuable players – including familiar names such as Vinicius Junior of Real Madrid, Erling Haaland and Phil Foden of Manchester City, and Paris Saint-Germain's French forward Kylian Mbappe.
CIES calculate the values using an algorithm developed by their own research team, and factors in players' ages, length of contract, salaries and other measures to determine a figure for the transfer market from clubs in the five major European leagues. Because of his age, it means there is no place in the top 100 for Argentina superstar Lionel Messi.
The full list is in the gallery above, in reverse order.
Who are the top 10 most valuable players?
All figures according to CIES
1. Jude Bellingham, Borussia Dortmund - €208.2m ($222m).
2. Phil Foden, Manchester City - €200.5m.
3. Kylian Mbappe, PSG - €190.7m.
4. Vinicius Junior, Real Madrid - €190.5m.
5. Erling Haaland, Manchester City - €174.9m.
6. Pedri, Barcelona - €170.2m.
7. Gavi, Barcelona - €147.6m.
8. Jamal Musiala, Bayern Munich - €145.1m.
9. Josko Gvardiol, RB Leipzig - €125.8m.
10. Federico Valverde, Real Madrid - €123.5m.
Company%20profile
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Winners
Best Men's Player of the Year: Kylian Mbappe (PSG)
Maradona Award for Best Goal Scorer of the Year: Robert Lewandowski (Bayern Munich)
TikTok Fans’ Player of the Year: Robert Lewandowski
Top Goal Scorer of All Time: Cristiano Ronaldo (Manchester United)
Best Women's Player of the Year: Alexia Putellas (Barcelona)
Best Men's Club of the Year: Chelsea
Best Women's Club of the Year: Barcelona
Best Defender of the Year: Leonardo Bonucci (Juventus/Italy)
Best Goalkeeper of the Year: Gianluigi Donnarumma (PSG/Italy)
Best Coach of the Year: Roberto Mancini (Italy)
Best National Team of the Year: Italy
Best Agent of the Year: Federico Pastorello
Best Sporting Director of the Year: Txiki Begiristain (Manchester City)
Player Career Award: Ronaldinho
Gully Boy
Director: Zoya Akhtar
Producer: Excel Entertainment & Tiger Baby
Cast: Ranveer Singh, Alia Bhatt, Kalki Koechlin, Siddhant Chaturvedi
Rating: 4/5 stars
How to wear a kandura
Dos
- Wear the right fabric for the right season and occasion
- Always ask for the dress code if you don’t know
- Wear a white kandura, white ghutra / shemagh (headwear) and black shoes for work
- Wear 100 per cent cotton under the kandura as most fabrics are polyester
Don’ts
- Wear hamdania for work, always wear a ghutra and agal
- Buy a kandura only based on how it feels; ask questions about the fabric and understand what you are buying
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500 People from Gaza enter France
115 Special programme for artists
25 Evacuation of injured and sick
'The Batman'
Stars:Robert Pattinson
Director:Matt Reeves
Rating: 5/5
About Okadoc
Date started: Okadoc, 2018
Founder/CEO: Fodhil Benturquia
Based: Dubai, UAE
Sector: Healthcare
Size: (employees/revenue) 40 staff; undisclosed revenues recording “double-digit” monthly growth
Funding stage: Series B fundraising round to conclude in February
Investors: Undisclosed
Biog
Age: 50
Known as the UAE’s strongest man
Favourite dish: “Everything and sea food”
Hobbies: Drawing, basketball and poetry
Favourite car: Any classic car
Favourite superhero: The Hulk original
Price, base / as tested From Dh173,775 (base model)
Engine 2.0-litre 4cyl turbo, AWD
Power 249hp at 5,500rpm
Torque 365Nm at 1,300-4,500rpm
Gearbox Nine-speed auto
Fuel economy, combined 7.9L/100km
The five pillars of Islam
The alternatives
• Founded in 2014, Telr is a payment aggregator and gateway with an office in Silicon Oasis. It’s e-commerce entry plan costs Dh349 monthly (plus VAT). QR codes direct customers to an online payment page and merchants can generate payments through messaging apps.
• Business Bay’s Pallapay claims 40,000-plus active merchants who can invoice customers and receive payment by card. Fees range from 1.99 per cent plus Dh1 per transaction depending on payment method and location, such as online or via UAE mobile.
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• 2checkout’s “all-in-one payment gateway and merchant account” accepts payments in 200-plus markets for 2.4-3.9 per cent, plus a Dh1.2-Dh1.8 currency conversion charge. The US provider processes online shop and mobile transactions and has 17,000-plus active digital commerce users.
• PayPal is probably the best-known online goods payment method - usually used for eBay purchases - but can be used to receive funds, providing everyone’s signed up. Costs from 2.9 per cent plus Dh1.2 per transaction.
Padmaavat
Director: Sanjay Leela Bhansali
Starring: Ranveer Singh, Deepika Padukone, Shahid Kapoor, Jim Sarbh
3.5/5
THURSDAY'S FIXTURES
4pm Maratha Arabians v Northern Warriors
6.15pm Deccan Gladiators v Pune Devils
8.30pm Delhi Bulls v Bangla Tigers
MATCH INFO
BRIGHTON 0
MANCHESTER UNITED 3
McTominay 44'
Mata 73'
Pogba 80'
Racecard
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